


Somewhere Along the Way

by Morgane (smilla840)



Category: Sunshine (2007)
Genre: M/M, Pre-Canon, Pre-Slash, WIP
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2012-11-03
Updated: 2012-11-03
Packaged: 2017-11-17 16:24:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 3,414
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/553546
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/smilla840/pseuds/Morgane
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A look at Mace and Capa's relationship pre-movie.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Capa

**Author's Note:**

> Warning: This fic is a WIP and is likely to remain so, for which I apologise. Since it's a series of vignettes I don't think it matters a lot, but I thought I should mention it anyway as we never get to the actual Mace/Capa part.
> 
> Originally posted at my livejournal.

Capa makes his way towards the locker room. He’s just spent all day with ‘his’ bomb, making sure it was assembled properly and running tests, and he feels sweaty and a little bit dirty from crawling all over the place. Not that he minds, but he is supposed to meet with Kaneda and Searle later and he’d like to take a shower first.

He’s only met Kaneda the day before when he arrived on site, transferred from the Pan-Asian Space Program, but Searle he knows already. He’s the one who declared Capa mentally fit, allowing him to join Icarus II. Though sometimes Capa wonders if they wouldn’t have agreed to send him anyway, consequences be damned. Sure, it wouldn’t do for him to go crazy up there and take the entire mission with him, but that bomb is their last hope, and he is the best – and only one – qualified to monitor it.

And tonight he’ll meet the two of them again, and they’ll introduce him to the rest of the crew. Honestly, Capa couldn’t care less. He’s always been something of a loner, be it by choice or because he was always surrounded by people much older than him. In any case he got used to it, prefers it even. It makes things simpler. He can concentrate on his work and he doesn’t get distracted.

But he appreciates the sentiment, the effort to make him feel part of the team – Searle’s, no doubt. It won’t make much difference though. Kaneda and Searle aside, the astronauts he’s met so far have made it quite clear that outsiders are just that – outsiders. 

His thoughts have led him to the locker room and he is relieved to find it empty. He showers quickly and is half-way dressed when a handful of guys stumble in, laughing and shouting about their latest flight simulation. 

A hush falls on the group when they spot him and Capa pulls a T-shirt over his head hastily. For all his so-called ‘fame’ – the man who made the Icarus Project possible and all that –, they don’t like having him here. So he ignores him and they ignore him – most of the time. 

This time isn’t going to be one of them, it seems, for there is one man who doesn’t look away. Who, in fact, looks him up and down with a raised eyebrow. Capa doesn’t remember seeing him around before – he probably would have, he thinks wryly – but his assessing gaze is making him uncomfortable.

Then the man opens his mouth. “The girls’ locker room is next door.”

There are a few snickers all around and Capa grits his teeth. Not the first time he’s heard that one. Rarely to his face though – they don’t dare. But he’s overheard them talked. And he isn’t going to say it doesn’t bother him – it does, very much. According to Searle, _he_ makes the men just as uneasy and that’s how they deal with it. Nothing Capa can do about it. True, he is under no illusion as far as his own looks are concerned. He knows his face is girly, his hair is getting too long again and he doesn’t have time – nor wish – to work out. He’s got more important things to do, and that includes saving all their asses.

Idiots.

So he closes his locker, tries to ignore the new guy – who just smirks at him – and leaves the room. He tells himself he doesn’t care – and he doesn’t, damn it. In less than a year he’ll be boarding Icarus II and leave them all behind. Good riddance.

Thirty minutes, he finds out it’s not going to be the case.

And ‘Mace’ is still smirking.


	2. Mace

Mace doesn’t really understand what’s going on. He’s always been a practical kind of guy and then Capa waltzed in and turned his neatly organized world upside-down. What had previously been simple and clear-cut is now fuzzy and so damn complicated it makes his head hurt.

It’s annoying, really, the way the higher-ups fawn all over him. Robert Capa, Boy Genius who invented the bomb that will save Humanity. Blah blah blah. Mace is getting sick of it. They’re all doing their job here, and Capa isn’t even an astronaut. He trains with them, sure, but a year’s worth of training isn’t nearly good enough. Oh, he does well enough – surprisingly – but up there it’s not the same and he’ll only end up endangering them all – and himself. You don’t see Mace trying to work on the payload, do you? People should know their place, and stick to it.

No, Capa is no astronaut. He is part of no military. And in the end that’s his greatest failing in Mace’s eyes. Not just because of the competence thing – he could work with that. No, the problem is that Capa doesn’t fit in the chain of command. His place is unclear, and it just doesn’t sit right with Mace’s military mind. If anything, it’s going to mess things up. Capa isn’t bound to the same obligations the rest of them are. He can argue and disagree all he wants, and no order will shut him up.

And that’s… that’s just asking for trouble. Especially when you’re millions of miles from home with only order to keep you from falling apart.

So Mace deals with it the only way he knows how. He ignores him, and when it gets too much he taunts and lashes out. He is being a world class asshole, he knows that too. But he just can’t seem to stop himself. He tries to keep his mind on the training because it’s an honor to have been chosen to be on Icarus II, and he isn’t going to screw it up because he can’t play nice with some skinny – and far too pretty for his own good – physicist. That’d be the last he needs, Searle declaring him unfit because he thinks Mace won’t cope with being locked up with Capa in the equivalent of a box for over three years.

That’s why he tries hard to go for ‘ignoring’. He still jokes, sometimes, with the guys from the Space Program because it’s only fair, right? And it doesn’t hurt anyone.

Then one evening, it’s one of the guys who makes the joke, one not so different from Mace’s, except he goes on to describe just what exactly he’d like to do with Capa’s girly mouth and Mace has to be pulled off him before he sends him to the hospital.

That’s when he figures he might have a bigger problem.


	3. Searle

Three months before departure, Searle finds himself sitting in front of his computer, writing his final assessment on the mental stability of his teammates.

They all have their weaknesses, no doubt. Cassie is too soft-hearted, Harvey too conceited, Kaneda too self-sacrificing… He could go on and on, but that’s not what’s on his mind right now. And it’s nothing major, really. Certainly nothing that would lead him to declare someone unfit for Icarus II. But it’s still something that, since he noticed it, he likes to ponder on when he’s got time. It’s Mace and Capa.

At first glance, Mace is perfect for the job. He is the best at what he does and fully dedicated to the mission. He is pragmatic, can see the global picture and keeps his head in times of crisis. That makes him an asset to reckon with.

Next is Capa, Boy Wonder Physicist, the reason they’re here today. He’s always been a little on the outside but Searle has made it his own personal mission to include him in everything concerning the crew – otherwise he’d spend all his free time with the payload and that wouldn’t do him any good. And it’s working, Searle thinks with satisfaction, mostly thanks to Cassie and Kaneda.

What the problem then, you might ask? 

The problem is that when you put Mace and Capa in the same room, Mace ignores Capa nine times out of ten. And that’s okay. They don’t have to become fast friends, after all. No, the problem is that once in a while, level-headed Mace loses his calm and turns to baiting and half-hidden insults. Always towards Capa, never anyone else. And Capa never says a word.

There was a time when Searle had considered banning Mace from the mission – Capa was far too vital for even considering leaving him behind –, thinking there was no way in hell they were going to last three years without inflicting bodily harm on one another or unsettling the mood. It’s a fragile thing, a mood, when you lock eight people together. If two are constantly fighting, the others suffer as well. Sides are taken and it tears a crew apart. 

That’s the last thing they need.

So yeah, Searle had worried. Because he didn’t want to lose Mace and it had seemed earlier on there would be no other options.

But then Mace had beaten up a fellow officer and while he had given no explanation – of course he wouldn’t –, witnesses had spoken of a degrading comment made about Capa, of all people.

And it had all become so clear that Searle had laughed out loud.

Since then he likes to keep up-to-date with the progress made by his two wayward team members. So he watches them but there has been no improvement yet – of any kind.

Pity he can't prescribe what they both need, he reflects with a wry smile. It would give the rest of them a breather. But Mace and Capa will have to figure this one out for themselves.

 

Satisfied, Searle sends off his report, giving them the green light for departure from the Psych Department.


	4. Capa

Capa is walking towards the training room when he hears someone call his name and turns to see Cassie jogging to catch up with him.

“Hey! Good morning,” she says, smiling brightly and Capa smiles back, a little awkward. He isn’t used to friendly people and doesn’t quite know how to deal with her – or what is expected from him.

Cassie doesn’t seem to mind though and she makes small talk as they walk. Capa finds himself nodding from time to time and gives non-committal answers when it seems appropriate. He thinks he could get used to this – and maybe, just maybe, it’d be nice – but right now it’s a little overwhelming.

Then Mace joins them and takes up the conversation with Cassie, completely ignoring Capa who finds himself ridiculously grateful. He fades into the background and watches them, trying to work this thing out. Mace makes it seem easy – then again, Capa found out shortly after meeting him that Mace makes a lot of things seem easy – and not for the first time Capa feels strangely inadequate.

He doesn’t know why. He didn’t use to care. Before.

Capa frowns, losing interest in the conversation. When exactly did it happen? He can’t pinpoint a precise moment but part of him insists it has something to do with Mace. Now why would he think that? Mace hasn’t done much apart from insulting him – though that has abated of late – and ignoring him. Though that’s not entirely true either. Mace also spends a great deal of time… watching him. Capa noticed only recently and he doesn’t quite know what to make of it. It’s unnerving, to say the least. But it doesn’t feel threatening, not exactly. It’s as if Mace is sizing him up, with an added edge Capa can’t identify.

And so Capa finds himself observing the man who is talking animatedly with Cassie and something inside him feels a little tight all of a sudden. He has no time to ponder on the sentiment though because as if he knew he was being watched, Mace’s eyes unerringly find his and Capa has to fight down a blush. He expects a comment, tells himself he has no reason to feel embarrassed – it’s not like Mace is one to talk, right? – but for once Mace doesn’t say anything and Capa looks away first.

He is saved from further scrutiny when he realizes they’re nearing their destination and he quickens his pace, pushing past the other two to reach the relative safety of the training room. Only to remember they’re using the suits again today.

Great.

 

They’re the last to arrive and Kaneda is about to hand out their assignments when Searle leans over to tell him something. Capa can’t hear, not from where he is standing, and if the looks of curiosity on the others’ faces are anything to go by neither can they. For all he knows it has nothing to do with today’s exercises but then Kaneda nods sharply and clears his throat.

“Mace and Capa. Suit up, you’re first.”

Well. That’s just perfect. And it’s only seven am.

 

Cassie helps him to put the suit on with a sympathetic smile but Capa ignores her attempt to cheer him up. He hates that suit. It’s heavy and uncomfortable and it makes it hard to breathe. He isn’t particularly claustrophobic – or else he figures he’d be in trouble – but he really doesn’t like it. And it’s not like he’s actually going to have to wear it – ever. And the others are all astronauts. They’ll deal with everything concerning the ship while he’ll deal with everything concerning the payload. That’s how it works. But still… just in case something happens he’s been told he needed the training. And so he trains, despite the vindictive part of him – the one he never listens to – who insists he doesn’t see the others learning about Physics and dark matter.

The suit locks and Capa fights the usual wave of panic, regulating his breathing. Mace is next to him and the room clears until they’re alone.

And then they’re in space. Or as much in space as you can be in a hangar of the Space Program. Realism isn’t one of their strongest suits.

With a sigh, Capa checks his helmet camera and ambles towards the maintenance modules behind Mace. Today they’re to repair a couple of air leaks – time is the essence, Icarus II is venting oxygen they can’t afford to lose, etc… Capa rolls his eyes at the scenario and focuses on the job. At least the suit is weightless now, even if it’s still as stifling as ever. 

Reaching the module – and Mace – he ignores the fact that this is yet another thing Mace does effortlessly. He glances at the feed coming from Mace’s camera and indeed the man doesn’t even appear to be sweating.

They work mostly in silence, with the occasional curt order from Mace and update for the ‘deck’. Capa is used to this by now – it’s been months since he started training and the tools feel familiar in his hands. The work is tedious, the same actions repeated over and over again as they check the surface of their ‘ship’ for other leaks or tears, and Capa finds it difficult to keep his mind on the job as it yearns to go over his bomb’s latest simulations. But he manages – somehow – and they’re almost done when he feels something is wrong. He appears to be… slipping. Which can’t possibly be true since he isn’t walking and his suit just shouldn’t be doing that. But then his feet move another inch and there is no doubt possible anymore.

“Mace, there –”

That’s all he can say before what’s keeping him glued to the fake ship stops working entirely and he starts floating away. He tries to catch something, anything, but the ship is disgustingly flat and there is nothing to stop him. If anything, his movements push him away from the ship, and remember when he thought his day couldn’t get any worse? Well, he’s just been proved wrong.

Suddenly there are a great deal of people yelling in his helmet, cursing and asking what’s going on, and Capa would really appreciate it if they would just. Shut. Up.

“Silence!” Kaneda finally makes himself heard and is obeyed immediately. “Capa, what happened?”

“I don’t know! The suit must have malfunctioned or something,” Capa answers, trying hard not to panic because hey, it’s not like they’re in space, right? They’re in a _hangar_ , and they’re going to get him out of there.

“Alright. We’re going to get you out of there.”

Exactly.

Capa listens to them bouncing theories back and forth and channels all his energy into keeping his breathing even. They can’t turn the gravity back on since he is floating some fifty feet above the ground and so he appears to be kind of stuck for now. Time drags on and Capa is starting to get a little too engrossed with just how much O2 he’s got left when Mace finally says something.

“Guys… I’ve got an idea.”

Mace’s plan is simple – and crazy, if anyone asks Capa and no one is, which he finds vaguely insulting since hello? He is the one _floating_! (and alright, maybe he isn’t dealing with the situation quite as calmly as he thought) Mace intends to push himself off the ship and into Capa, and velocity should do the rest, sending them both towards the floor. Once they hit it, gravity will be switched back on and all will be well. 

Hopefully.

Then they’re back to arguing about angles because to make things simple Mace is currently standing between Capa and the floor. And so Capa has to wait for Mace to make his way above him and it feels like it’s taking forever.

Not that he is worried or anything. It’s just that he is still slowly drifting across the room and if Mace doesn’t hurry who knows where he’ll end up? The hangar is _huge_. 

“Capa?” Mace’s voice echoes in his ear. “Try not to move.”

Capa wants to make a sarcastic comment about how he doesn’t have much of a choice but then Mace is finally there, _flying_ towards him and he isn’t going fast enough. Capa’s brain is busy calculating speed and distances when Mace slams into him and the sudden movement makes his head snap back in his helmet. For a second he sees stars before he realizes they’re both moving, moving towards the ground and even if they’re going slower than they probably should, at least they’re going in the right direction.

It seems to take forever for them to reach the ground. An overeager person turns the gravity back on before they’ve actually touched it and the last few inches are fast and painful. The weight of the suit is suddenly very real and keeps him pinned on the ground as he tries to get his bearings. 

Then there are people all around him, pulling him back on his feet and out of the suit and the fresh air on his sweaty skin has to be the best feeling in the world. Cassie is next to him, looking worried, and Searle pats his shoulder, saying he did a good job – and that’s got to be a joke because he didn’t do anything – as he tries to catch his breath and calm the frantic beating of his heart.

As soon as he is free again he turns towards Mace, wanting to thank him, and finds the man glaring at him. Capa is so taken aback he can’t get the words out of his mouth before Mace storms out, a dark look on his face.

Capa blinks, trying to understand what just happened – he didn’t _do_ anything! – before anger rises inside him. And Capa doesn’t get angry often but now Mace’s done it. He takes off after him, intent on getting answers _now_ , because he never did anything to the guy, damn it! What happened today certainly wasn’t his fault so why is Mace so set against him?

He’s only taken five steps out of the room when noises divert his attention towards the right. Raised voices, or rather one raised voice. Mace. Who, from the sound of it, is yelling at someone about suit maintenance and how someone could have died.

Capa thinks that’s a little excessive, especially when he rounds the corner and sees the face of the poor guy who is encountering Mace’s wrath. His appearance puts an abrupt end to Mace’s recriminations and he takes off again with one final glare in Capa’s direction.

His anger forgotten, Capa can only stare after him.

What was that about?


End file.
